DARTMOUTH — The Apponequet Lakers Softball team lost in the semifinals of the state championship to the Hudson Hawks Wednesday, June 12 after the tides turned halfway through the game. 

The number two seeded Lakers faced off against the number three seeded Hudson Hawks in the final four matchup of the MIAA Division 3 softball championship at UMass Dartmouth.

The Lakers maintained a comfortable lead through the first half of the game, keeping the score 2-0 until the fourth inning. 

But after scoring a run in the fourth, bringing the score to 2-1, the Hawks showed they knew how to make up for lost time. At the top of the sixth, the Hawks and Lakers were tied 3-3. 

The Hawks then inched past the Lakers, bringing the score up 4-3. 

Apponequet scored another run in the sixth, but in the last inning of the high-stakes game, the Hawks couldn’t be reigned in. Hudson threw solid pitches and brought in another two points in the bottom of the seventh, securing a 6-4 win. 

Though Apponequet players shed tears and disappointment showed on their faces after the game, they were reminded to not lose sight of what they’d accomplished. 

“I told them I know it [stinks] right now, but you’re going to look back on this and you’re going to be proud of what you accomplished this year,” Coach Nate Harrington said.

He for one couldn’t be prouder of his team, he said. It is the first time since 1999 that the Lakers softball team has made it to the semifinals of the state championship. 

“I couldn’t be prouder of the way we didn’t quit. Even in the last inning, we got two runners on,” said Harrington of the way his players rallied late in the game.

The team will say goodbye to senior pitcher Lauren Bernaiche and third baseman Eva Zuber. Harrington said that losing these key players will mean the team has “big shoes to fill” next year. 

Bernaiche will be playing softball for Thomas Jefferson University and Zuber will play for Plymouth State in the fall.